Question

What is radical halogenation?

Answer 1

When a halogen is substituted onto a molecule via free radical substituion.

Explanation:

An example of this reaction is the halogenation of methane.

`"CH"_4 + "C"l_2 (+"UV light")rarr "CH"_3"C"l + "HC"l`

In this reaction, methane reacts with the free radical `"C"l*`. This radical is formed when the bond chlorine in a chlorine molecule is broken so that each atom gets one electron - this is known as homolytic fission.

`"C"l_2(+"UV light")rarr"C"l*+"C"l*`

These radicals then react with methane in a free radical halogenation reaction to form chloromethane.